UM technology transfer showcase honors faculty

UM System President Manuel T. Pacheco presents Dr. Henry W. White, professor and chair of physics at UM-Columbia, with the first annual Faculty Entrepreneur of the Year award, given to recognize entrepreneurial innovation for 2001.

The University of Missouri Office of Technology and Special Projects honored faculty for their patent inventions and research at the second annual Technology Transfer Showcase, April 25, in St. Louis.

UM System President Manuel T. Pacheco and Vice President for Academic Affairs Steve Lehmkuhle presented awards to three groups of honorees.

The first group to be recognized included faculty who have filed invention disclosures and faculty with inventions licensed that produced royalty income from January 2001 to December 2001. This group included over a hundred faculty members from the four campuses.

Faculty members awarded U.S. patents from January 2001 to December 2001 were the second group to be honored at the showcase. These inventors are: Dr. Gary J. Ehrhardt, Dr. Rainer E. Glaser, Ms. Chrys Higginbotham, Dr. Timothy J. Hoffman, Dr. Eugene L. Iannotti, Dr. Jan A. Miernyk, Dr. Roy O. Morris, Dr. Randall S. Prather, Dr. Douglas D. Randall, Dr. Yungryel Ryu, Mr. Gary Sieckman, Dr. Daniel S. Smith, Dr. Kathy L. Timms, Dr. Nan Unklesbay, Dr. Joseph M. Vandepopuliere, Dr. Wynn A. Volkert, Dr. John C. Walker and Dr. Henry W. White.

The first annual Faculty Entrepreneur of the Year award was presented to Dr. Henry W. White, professor and chair of physics at UM-Columbia. The award was given to recognize entrepreneurial innovation for 2001.

Dr. White and his colleagues, S. Zhu and Yungryel Ryu, developed a new means of producing blue light emitting diodes and laser diodes. Two patents have been issued on this technology so far.

"The Technology Transfer Showcase is a highlight of the year for the Office of Technology and Special Projects," said Thomas Sharpe, Ph.D., executive director of the OTSP. "Dr. White is certainly a pristine example of the entrepreneurial spirit among the faculty at the University of Missouri."

The Office of Technology and Special Projects was established in September 1999 as a partnership of the UM System and its four campuses. Over the past year and a half, the four campuses of the UM System have seen pending patent applications increase from 33 to more than 90, and income from licenses more than double to $3.9 million.

In addition to the more traditional patenting and licensing activities, the OTSP works to provide an entrepreneurial environment and support structure within the University. The goal is to encourage commercialization of new technologies through University spin off-companies and various forms of research, development and partnerships with the private sector.

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